Control of STA1 gene expression by the mating-type locus in yeasts

Msn1p/Mss10p, Mss11p and Muc1p/Flo11p are part of a signal transduction pathway downstream of Mep2p regulating invasive growth and pseudohyphal differentiation in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

In Saccharomyces cerevisiae, a network of signal transduction pathways governs the switch from yeast-type growth to pseudohyphal and invasive growth that occurs in response to nutrient limitation. Important elements of this network have been identified, including nutrient signal receptors, GTP-binding proteins, components of the pheromone-dependent MAP kinase cascade and several transcription factors. However, the structural and functional mapping of these pathways is far from complete. Here, we present data regarding three genes, MSN1/MSS10, MSS11 and MUC1/FLO11, which form an essential part of the signal transduction network establishing invasive growth. Both MSN1 and MSS11 are involved in the co-regulation of starch degradation and invasive growth. Msn1p and Mss11p act downstream of Mep2p and Ras2p and regulate the transcription of both STA2 and MUC1. We show that MUC1 mediates the effect of Msn1p and Mss11p on invasive growth. In addition, our results suggest that the activity of Msn1p is independent of the invasive growth MAP kinase cascade, but the Mss11p is required for the activation of pseudohyphal and invasive growth by Ste12p. We also show that starch metabolism in S. cerevisiae is subject to regulation by components of the MAP kinase cascade.

The cell surface flocculin Flo11 is required for pseudohyphae formation and invasion by Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Diploid yeast develop pseudohyphae in response to nitrogen starvation, while haploid yeast produce invasive filaments which penetrate the agar in rich medium. We have identified a gene, FLO11, that encodes a cell wall protein which is critically required for both invasion and pseudohyphae formation in response to nitrogen starvation. FLO11 encodes a cell surface flocculin with a structure similar to the class of yeast serine/threonine-rich GPI-anchored cell wall proteins. Cells of the Saccharomyces cerevisiae strain Sigma1278b with deletions of FLO11 do not form pseudohyphae as diploids nor invade agar as haploids. In rich media, FLO11 is regulated by mating type; it is expressed in haploid cells but not in diploids. Upon transfer to nitrogen starvation media, however, FLO11 transcripts accumulate in diploid cells, but not in haploids. Overexpression of FLO11 in diploid cells, which are otherwise not invasive, enables them to invade agar. Thus, the mating type repression of FLO11 in diploids grown in rich media suffices to explain the inability of these cells to invade. The promoter of FLO11 contains a consensus binding sequence for Ste12p and Tec1p, proteins known to cooperatively activate transcription of Ty1 elements and the TEC1 gene during development of pseudohyphae. Yeast with a deletion of STE12 does not express FLO11 transcripts, indicating that STE12 is required for FLO11 expression. These ste12-deletion strains also do not invade agar. However, the ability to invade can be restored by overexpressing FLO11. Activation of FLO11 may thus be the primary means by which Ste12p and Tec1p cause invasive growth.

FLO11, a yeast gene related to the STA genes, encodes a novel cell surface flocculin

We report the characterization of a gene encoding a novel flocculin related to the STA genes of yeast, which encode secreted glucoamylase. The STA genes comprise sequences that are homologous to the sporulation-specific glucoamylase SGA and to two other sequences, S2 and S1. We find that S2 and S1 are part of a single gene which we have named FLO11. The sequence of FLO11 reveals a 4,104-bp open reading frame on chromosome IX whose predicted product is similar in overall structure to the class of yeast serine/threonine-rich GPI-anchored cell wall proteins. An amino-terminal domain containing a signal sequence and a carboxy-terminal domain with homology to GPI (glycosyl-phosphatidyl-inositol) anchor-containing proteins are separated by a central domain containing a highly repeated threonine- and serine-rich sequence. Yeast cells that express FLO11 aggregate in the calcium-dependent process of flocculation. Flocculation is abolished when FLO11 is disrupted. The product of STA1 also is shown to have flocculating activity. When a green fluorescent protein fusion of FLO11 was expressed from the FLO11 promoter on a single-copy plasmid, fluorescence was observed in vivo at the periphery of cells. We propose that FLO11 encodes a flocculin because of its demonstrated role in flocculation, its structural similarity to other members of the FLO gene family, and the cell surface location of its product. FLO11 gene sequences are present in all yeast strains tested, including all standard laboratory strains, unlike the STA genes which are present only in the variant strain Saccharomyces cerevisiae var. diastaticus. FLO11 differs from all other yeast flocculins in that it is located near a centromere rather than a telomere, and its expression is regulated by mating type. Repression of FLO11-dependent flocculation in diploids is conferred by the mating-type repressor al/alpha2.

Properties and engineering of a mutant STA promoter of Saccharomyces diastaticus

A new allelic variant of the STA2 gene of S. diastaticus, designated as STA2K, was cloned and characterized (1; accompanying paper). An application-oriented analysis of the promoter region of STA2K is described, with an emphasis on its peculiar structural feature: A 1.1-kb natural deletion located 189 nucleotides upstream of the translation start codon. The strength of the STA2K promoter was found comparable to that of known strong constitutive yeast promoters (ADH1, GAPDH). Regulated glucoamylase expression was demonstrated by chimeric promoters, which were constructed by placing the STA2K promoter under the control of either the PHO5 or CYC1 upstream regulatory sequences. On high-copy-number vectors, induction of the UASPHO5-STA2K chimeric promoter by phosphate depletion resulted in a destructive overexpression of the secreted glucoamylase, which completely halted cell growth, and promoted cell decay. In contrast, UASCYC1 was shown to mediate a fine-tuned regulation both by glucose concentration and, indirectly, by starch, the substrate for the glucoamylase to produce glucose.

Cloning of a new allelic variant of a Saccharomyces diastaticus glucoamylase gene and its introduction into industrial yeasts

A new allelic variant of the STA2 gene, designated as STA2K, coding for a secreted glucoamylase, was cloned. Differences were revealed both in the structural gene and in the promoter region, as compared to other STA genes. The most peculiar structural features of STA2K are 1. a 1.1-kb natural deletion in its promoter located 189 nucleotides upstream of the translation start codon; and 2. an Asn-->Asp single amino acid change within the putative active site of the encoded glucoamylase. Neither the presence of glucose in the medium nor the host cell's mating type constellation affected the expression level of STA2K in S. cerevisiae. Self-replicating yeast plasmids containing STA2K were constructed and used to transform a laboratory yeast strain and various brewing strains. Pilot brewing tests with glucoamylase-secreting transformants of a brewing strain produced superattenuated beers at accelerated fermentation rates.

a/alpha-control of DNA repair in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae: genetic and physiological aspects

It has long been known that diploid strains of yeast are more resistant to gamma-rays than haploid cells, and that this is in part due to heterozygosity at the mating type (MAT) locus. It is shown here that the genetic control exerted by the MAT genes on DNA repair involves the a1 and alpha 2 genes, in a RME1-independent way. In rad18 diploids, affected in the error-prone repair, the a/alpha effects are of a very large amplitude, after both UV and gamma-rays, and also depends on a1 and alpha 2. The coexpression of a and alpha in rad18 haploids suppresses the sensitivity of a subpopulation corresponding to the G2 phase cells. Related to this, the coexpression of a and alpha in RAD+ haploids depresses UV-induced mutagenesis in G2 cells. For srs2 null diploids, also affected in the error-prone repair pathway, we show that their G1 UV sensitivity, likely due to lethal recombination events, is partly suppressed by MAT homozygosity. Taken together, these results led to the proposal that a1-alpha 2 promotes a channeling of some DNA structures from the mutagenic into the recombinational repair process.

The GAM1/SNF2 gene of Saccharomyces cerevisiae encodes a highly charged nuclear protein required for transcription of the STA1 gene

We have cloned and sequenced the GAM1 gene which is required for transcription of the STA1 gene encoding an extracellular glucoamylase in Saccharomyces cerevisiae var. diastaticus. Complementation tests indicated that GAM1 is the same gene as SNF2 which is required for derepression of the SUC2 gene encoding invertase. Accumulation of SNF2 RNA was not regulated by the GAM2 and GAM3 genes which are also required for STA1 expression. The SNF2 gene was predicted to encode a 194 kDa highly charged protein with a glutamine-rich tract. A bifunctional SNF2-lacZ fusion protein was shown by immunofluorescence microscopy to be localized to the nucleus, suggesting that the SNF2 protein is located in the nucleus.

A genetic analysis of an alpha-amylase super-secretor in yeast; implications for the regulatory pathway

Extracellular glucoamylase activity was increased by a gene, which is present in super-secretor, but absent in low-secretor, strains of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Genetic data indicated that this super-secretor gene is linked to the STA3 structural gene for glucoamylase. This gene appears to act specifically since it increased the secretion of glucoamylase but not of other secreted enzymes like acid phosphatase and invertase.

Positive and negative elements upstream of the meiosis-specific glucoamylase gene in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

The SGA1 gene encoding glucoamylase is specifically expressed late in meiotic development of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. We found that accumulation of both enzyme activity and transcripts was regulated negatively by both nutritional signals and a haploid-specific negative regulator gene of meiosis. RME1, and positively by the inducer genes for meiosis, IME1 and IME2. To study the role of sequences upstream of the SGA1 gene in its expression and regulation, we generated internal deletions in the 5' non-coding region of the gene and chimeric genes with portions of the upstream sequence inserted into a reporter gene. By analyzing the expression of these genes, we have identified both a 19 bp upstream activation sequence (UAS) and a 49 bp negatively regulating element (NRE). The UAS activated transcription with no requirement for heterozygosity at the mating-type locus, but this activation was still under negative control by nutrients. The NRE showed no UAS-like activity but conferred IME2-dependent (or meiosis-specific) expression on a heterologous promoter. These results suggest that meiosis-specific expression of the SGA1 gene is established by a regulatory hierarchy including positive and negative factors, the actions of which are mediated through the two separate upstream regulatory elements, UAS and NRE, respectively. Also, that two independently acting cascades exist for the regulation of SGA1 expression: one transduces both the mating-type and nutritional signals and includes the IME2 product, which acts to relieve the repression through NRE; and another transduces only the nutritional signal independently of the above pathway and inhibits positive factors acting on UAS.

The glucoamylase multigene family in Saccharomyces cerevisiae var. diastaticus: an overview

Saccharomyces cerevisiae has been used widely both as a model system for unraveling the biochemical, genetic, and molecular details of gene expression and the secretion process, and as a host for the production of heterologous proteins of biotechnological interest. The potential of starch as a renewable biological resource has stimulated research into amylolytic enzymes and the broadening of the substrate range of S. cerevisiae. The enzymatic hydrolysis of starch, consisting of linear (amylose) and branched glucose polymers (amylopectin), is catalyzed by alpha- and beta-amylases, glucoamylases, and debranching enzymes, e.g., pullulanases. Starch utilization in the yeast S. cerevisiae var. diastaticus depends on the expression of the three unlinked genes, STA1 (chr. IV), STA2 (chr. II), and STA3 (chr. XIV), each encoding one of the extracellular glycosylated glucoamylases isozymes GAI, GAII, or GAIII, respectively. The restriction endonuclease maps of STA1, STA2, and STA3 are identical. These genes are absent in S. cerevisiae, but a related gene, SGA1, encoding an intracellular, sporulation-specific glucoamylase (SGA), is present. SGA1 is homologous to the middle and 3' regions of the STA genes, but lacks a 5' sequence that encodes the domain for secretion of the extracellular glucoamylases. The STA genes are positively regulated by the presence of three GAM genes. In addition to positive regulation, the STA genes are regulated negatively at three levels. Whereas strains of S. diastaticus are capable of expressing the STA genes, most strains of S. cerevisiae contain STA10, whose presence represses the expression of the STA genes in an undefined manner. The STA genes are also repressed in diploid cells, presumably by the MATa/MAT alpha-encoded repressor. STA gene expression is reduced in liquid synthetic media, it is carbon catabolite repressed by glucose, and is inhibited in petite mutants.

Differential regulation of STA genes of Saccharomyces cerevisiae

The single glucoamylase gene (SGA1) of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae is expressed exclusively during the sporulation phase of the life cycle. Enzymatic studies and nucleic acid sequence comparisons have shown that the SGA1 glucoamylase is closely related to the secreted enzymes of S. cerevisiae var. diastaticus. The latter are encoded by any of three unlinked STA genes, which have been proposed to derive from the ancestral SGA1 form by genomic rearrangement. We show that the regulation of SGA1 is distinct from that of the other members of the STA gene family. SGA1 expression did not respond to STA10, the primary determinant of glucoamylase expression from STA2. Unlike STA2, SGA1 was not regulated directly by the mating type locus. Expression of SGA1 depended on the function of the MAT products in supporting sporulation and not on the formation of haploid progeny spores or on the composition of the mating type locus per se. We conclude that the STA genes acquired regulation by STA10 and MAT by the genomic rearrangements that led to their formation. This regulation is thus distinct from that of the ancestral SGA1 gene.

Regulation of STA1 gene expression by MAT during the life cycle of Saccharomyces cerevisiae

STA1 encodes a secreted glucoamylase of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae var. diastaticus. Glucoamylase secretion is controlled by the mating type locus MAT; a and alpha haploid yeast cells secrete high levels of the enzyme, but a/alpha diploid cells produce undetectable amounts. It has been suggested that STA1 is regulated by MATa2 (I. Yamashita, Y. Takano, and S. Fukui, J. Bacteriol. 164:769-773, 1985), which is a MAT transcript of previously unknown function. In contrast, this work shows that deletion of the entire MATa2 gene had no effect on STA1 regulation but that deletion of MATa1 sequences completely abolished mating-type control. In all cases, glucoamylase activity levels reflected STA1 mRNA levels. It appears that STA1 is a haploid-specific gene that is regulated by MATa1 and a product of the MAT alpha locus and that this regulation occurs at the level of RNA accumulation. STA1 expression was also shown to be glucose repressible. STA1 mRNA was induced in diploids during sporulation along with SGA, a closely linked gene that encodes an intracellular sporulation-specific glucoamylase of S. cerevisiae. A diploid strain with a MATa1 deletion showed normal induction of STA1 in sporulation medium, but SGA expression was abolished. Therefore, these two homologous and closely linked glucoamylase genes are induced by different mechanisms during sporulation. STA1 induction may be a response to the starvation conditions necessary for sporulation, while SGA induction is governed by the pathway by which MAT regulates sporulation. The strain containing a complete deletion of MATa2 grew, mated, and sporulated normally.

Regulation of STA1 gene expression by MAT during the life cycle of Saccharomyces cerevisiae

STA1 encodes a secreted glucoamylase of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae var. diastaticus. Glucoamylase secretion is controlled by the mating type locus MAT; a and alpha haploid yeast cells secrete high levels of the enzyme, but a/alpha diploid cells produce undetectable amounts. It has been suggested that STA1 is regulated by MATa2 (I. Yamashita, Y. Takano, and S. Fukui, J. Bacteriol. 164:769-773, 1985), which is a MAT transcript of previously unknown function. In contrast, this work shows that deletion of the entire MATa2 gene had no effect on STA1 regulation but that deletion of MATa1 sequences completely abolished mating-type control. In all cases, glucoamylase activity levels reflected STA1 mRNA levels. It appears that STA1 is a haploid-specific gene that is regulated by MATa1 and a product of the MAT alpha locus and that this regulation occurs at the level of RNA accumulation. STA1 expression was also shown to be glucose repressible. STA1 mRNA was induced in diploids during sporulation along with SGA, a closely linked gene that encodes an intracellular sporulation-specific glucoamylase of S. cerevisiae. A diploid strain with a MATa1 deletion showed normal induction of STA1 in sporulation medium, but SGA expression was abolished. Therefore, these two homologous and closely linked glucoamylase genes are induced by different mechanisms during sporulation. STA1 induction may be a response to the starvation conditions necessary for sporulation, while SGA induction is governed by the pathway by which MAT regulates sporulation. The strain containing a complete deletion of MATa2 grew, mated, and sporulated normally.

Expression of a Bacillus alpha-amylase gene in yeast

A recombinant plasmid, pSR11.3, containing the alpha-amylase gene (AMY) of Bacillus amyloliquefaciens was characterized and expressed in Bacillus subtilis. A 2.3 kilobase BamHI-BglII fragment carrying AMY was cloned into pBR322 (pEL322) and in both orientations into a multi-copy Escherichia coli-yeast shuttle vector YEp13 (pAM13) and expressed in E. coli HB101 and various Saccharomyces stains. We report on the successful secretion of an active bacterial enzyme in yeast without using yeast promoter and secretory signals. Enzyme production in B. subtilis 1A297(pSR11.3), E. coli HB101(pEL322) and Saccharomyces JM2773-15B(pAM13) transformants was measured as 125, 22 and 123 U/ml, respectively. The molecular weight of the purified alpha-amylase secreted by B. subtilis 1A297(pSR11.3) and Saccharomyces JM2773-15B-(pAM13) was estimated to be 55 kDa. The pH and temperature optima for the alpha-amylase activities of the transformants were 6.5 to 8.0 and 50 to 65 degrees C, respectively. Amylose hydrolysis profiles of the alpha-amylases secreted by B. subtilis 1A297(pSR11.3) and Saccharomyces JM2773-15B(pAM13) indicate effective meso-thermostable hydrolytic enzymes with maltotriose and maltose, respectively, as major end products.

Gene fusion is a possible mechanism underlying the evolution of STA1

DNA from the STA1 (extracellular glucoamylase) gene of Saccharomyces diastaticus was used as a probe to enable the cloning by colony hybridization of three DNA fragments from Saccharomyces cerevisiae; these were designated S1, S2, and SGA (intracellular, sporulation-specific glucoamylase gene). To examine the evolutionary relationship among these sequences at the nucleotide level, we sequenced S2, S1, SGA and compared them with STA1. These data and RNA blot analysis revealed that the following regions of STA1 were highly conserved in S2, S1, and SGA: upstream regulatory sequences responsible for transcription, a signal sequence for protein secretion, a threonine- and serine-rich domain, and a catalytic domain for glucoamylase activity. These results suggest that an ancestral STA gene was generated relatively recently in an evolutionary time scale by the sequential fusions of S2, S1, and SGA, with S1 functioning as a connector for S2 and SGA. We describe a model for the involvement of short nucleotide sequences flanking the junctions in the gene fusions.

Transcriptional control of glucoamylase synthesis in vegetatively growing and sporulating Saccharomyces species

Three unlinked, homologous genes, STA1, STA2, and STA3, encode the extracellular glycosylated glucoamylase isozymes I, II, and III, respectively, in Saccharomyces species. S. cerevisiae, which is sta0 (absence of functional STA genes in haploids), does carry a glucoamylase gene, delta sta, expressed only during sporulation (W. J. Colonna and P. T. Magee, J. Bacteriol. 134:844-853, 1978; I. Yamashita and S. Fukui, Mol. Cell. Biol. 5:3069-3073, 1985). In this study we examined some of the physiological and genetic factors that affect glucoamylase expression. It was found that STA2 strains grown in synthetic medium produce glucoamylase only in the presence of either Maltrin M365 (a mixture of maltooligosaccharides) or starch. Maximal levels of glucoamylase activity were found in cells grown in rich medium supplemented with glycerol plus ethanol, starch, or Maltrin. When various sugars served as carbon sources they all supported glucoamylase synthesis, although at reduced levels. In any given growth medium glucoamylase isozyme II synthesis was modulated by functionality of the mitochondria. Synthesis of glucoamylase is continuous throughout the growth phases, with maximal secretion taking place in the early stationary phase. In the various regimens, the differences in enzyme accumulation are accounted for by differences in the levels of glucoamylase mRNA. Both glucoamylase mRNA and enzyme activity were drastically and coordinately inhibited in MATa/MAT alpha diploids and by the presence of the regulatory gene STA10. Both effects were partially overcome when the STA2 gene was present on a multicopy plasmid. The STA2 mRNA and glucoamylase were coinduced in sporulating STA2/STA2 diploids. A smaller, coinduced RNA species was also detected by Northern blotting with a STA2 probe. The same mRNA species was detected in sporulating sta0 diploids and is likely to encode the sporulation-specific glucoamylase.

Transcriptional control of glucoamylase synthesis in vegetatively growing and sporulating Saccharomyces species

Three unlinked, homologous genes, STA1, STA2, and STA3, encode the extracellular glycosylated glucoamylase isozymes I, II, and III, respectively, in Saccharomyces species. S. cerevisiae, which is sta0 (absence of functional STA genes in haploids), does carry a glucoamylase gene, delta sta, expressed only during sporulation (W. J. Colonna and P. T. Magee, J. Bacteriol. 134:844-853, 1978; I. Yamashita and S. Fukui, Mol. Cell. Biol. 5:3069-3073, 1985). In this study we examined some of the physiological and genetic factors that affect glucoamylase expression. It was found that STA2 strains grown in synthetic medium produce glucoamylase only in the presence of either Maltrin M365 (a mixture of maltooligosaccharides) or starch. Maximal levels of glucoamylase activity were found in cells grown in rich medium supplemented with glycerol plus ethanol, starch, or Maltrin. When various sugars served as carbon sources they all supported glucoamylase synthesis, although at reduced levels. In any given growth medium glucoamylase isozyme II synthesis was modulated by functionality of the mitochondria. Synthesis of glucoamylase is continuous throughout the growth phases, with maximal secretion taking place in the early stationary phase. In the various regimens, the differences in enzyme accumulation are accounted for by differences in the levels of glucoamylase mRNA. Both glucoamylase mRNA and enzyme activity were drastically and coordinately inhibited in MATa/MAT alpha diploids and by the presence of the regulatory gene STA10. Both effects were partially overcome when the STA2 gene was present on a multicopy plasmid. The STA2 mRNA and glucoamylase were coinduced in sporulating STA2/STA2 diploids. A smaller, coinduced RNA species was also detected by Northern blotting with a STA2 probe. The same mRNA species was detected in sporulating sta0 diploids and is likely to encode the sporulation-specific glucoamylase.